Best of Toronto

The view of downtown Toronto from Humber Bay Park West (photo: Craig Moy)

At street level, it’s easy to get a sense of Toronto’s busyness—its many packed restaurants, its workers hustling to and from their offices, its ever-present car traffic. What’s not always evident, though, is the megacity’s sheer scope. These prime vantage points and rooftop roosts show just how far the Big Smoke stretches.

YOU AND YOUR COLLEAGUES (AND CLIENTS) WILL BE TREATED RIGHT AT THESE SOPHISTICATED TORONTO RESTAURANTS

Hy’s Steakhouse is a classic clubhouse for Financial District dealmakers (photo: courtesy of Hy’s Steakhouse)

We know that not every meeting takes place in a boardroom; some negotiations are better handled over a leisurely meal or a few drinks. Fortunately there are client-friendly restaurants in some of the city’s classiest neighbourhoods.

THESE ESTABLISHMENTS CAN HELP WEARY BUSINESS TRAVELLERS GET REFRESHED FROM HEAD TO TOE

Perk up your boardroom attire at Harry Rosen (left) and Marlowe (right), and refresh your look with products from World Salon

Though business-casual attire has overtaken the three-piece suit, it’s still important to look professional. Put your trust in these sophisticated retailers and service providers if you’ve forgotten something at home or are in need of a wardrobe tune-up.

DON’T MISS THESE UNIQUE NEW AND ONGOING EXHIBITIONS AT SOME OF TORONTO’S TOP MUSEUMS!

Abbas Kiarostami’s exhibition, Doors Without Keys, continues at the Aga Khan Museum through to March 20 (photo: Craig Moy)

The permanent collections at Toronto’s major cultural institutions are always worth exploring, but this season their limited-run shows are also very compelling. From two distinct displays of doors to an anthropological examination of tattoo art, there’s something for everyone at these unique new museum shows.

VISIT ANY ONE OF THESE UNIQUE TORONTO CAFÉS FOR HIGH-QUALITY COFFEE AND DECADENT BAKED GOODS—PLUS BONUSES LIKE AMAZING AMBIENCE, SUPERIOR SERVICE, GREAT VIEWS AND EVEN BOARD GAMES!

Boxcar Social makes its coffees and espresso-based beverages with a often-changing selection of beans from world-renowned roasters (photo: Boxcar Social)

Is a proliferation of cafés any indication of a city’s success? It’s not hard to argue in favour of the idea. Those who pass time at coffee shops necessarily have the leisure to do so. Leisure implies financial comfort, freedom—at least temporary—from work. Others, of course, use cafés as de facto workspaces, with caffeine helping fuel their creative contributions to the economy. And then there are the café owners themselves, who must be sufficiently confident in a city’s commercial vitality to have opened their businesses in the first place.

Ever dynamic, downtown Toronto hosts innumerable independent coffee-sipping spots. Many of the most popular, like Dark Horse, Sam James, Crema and Jimmy’s, are successful enough to support multiple locations across the city. There are far more excellent cafés than can reasonably be counted here, so let’s just say we hold the 13 places below in high regard—not only for their beverages, but for their delicious snacks, congenial ambience and other intangibles, too.

THESE DISTINCTIVE HEATED PATIOS MAKE OUTDOOR DINING HIGHLY DESIRABLE DURING WINTER IN TORONTO

The Drake Hotel’s heated Sky Yard patio has been transformed into a cozy, contemporary legion hall for winter (photo: the Drake Hotel)

Whether or not you accept the science behind climate change, there’s no denying that Toronto experienced an unseasonably warm end to 2015, with temperatures reaching the low teens all the way up to Christmas. But now it seems winter’s chill (a modest version of it, at least) has indeed taken hold, ensuring that on most days it’s preferable to be indoors rather than out. Of course, even on the coldest of days there are those of us who yearn for a bit of fresh air and a view of the (slate grey) sky. A handful of Toronto restaurants are set up to oblige our “outdoors, indoors” desires with their popular heated patios.

AN ARTS FESTIVAL’S ANNIVERSARY, AN INFLUX OF PRO SPORTS STARS AND THE OPENING OF TWO LUXURY RETAILERS ARE AMONG THE MANY EXCELLENT REASONS TO VISIT TORONTO IN 2016

Jet (or drive, or take the train) into Toronto in 2016. There are a great many reasons we’re excited for the year ahead (photo: Phillip Grondin)

This past year was one of the most exciting Toronto has seen in a long time. The Pan Am and Parapan Am Games brought thousands of international athletes to the city for a summer of widely praised competition. The Aga Khan Museum gave us a beautiful, compelling look at one of the world’s most vibrant cultures. The revitalization of the downtown waterfront finally came to (admittedly, somewhat confusing at first) fruition. And, of course, the Blue Jays’ playoff run helped renew our sense of civic pride and gave the rest of Canada a reason to love Toronto once more.

It’ll be hard to top all that as we head into a new year, but there’s still much afoot to justify our high expectations. From hotly anticipated performances to major retail openings to a few useful urban improvements, these are some of the best reasons to visit Toronto in 2016.

In recent years it’s been fairly easy to pinpoint the developments that most influenced Toronto’s diverse but fickle eating-out industry. Not too long ago, “Middleterranean” fare was all the rage. Before that it was vegetables that took centre stage (or, if you will, centre plate). And most locals no doubt recall the days when charcuterie dominated all dining discussion.

Trend spotting in 2015 has been more challenging—in part because the city saw a relative slowdown in restaurant openings, cooling the pace of change. But if you look closely, it’s still possible to discern some characteristics that have lately defined Toronto’s food scene.

WHERE TORONTO READERS HAVE VORACIOUS APPETITES (IT TAKES A LOT OF FUEL TO SEE AND DO EVERYTHING THE CITY HAS TO OFFER). EACH YEAR, YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR FAVOURITE DINING ROOMS AS PART OF OUR WHERE TO DINE AWARDS. THESE ARE THE RESTAURANTS THAT EARNED YOUR ACCLAIM IN 2015.

The Sultan’s Tent offers a unique night out for visitors to Toronto (photo: Liam Mogan)

INTERNATIONALThe Sultan’s Tent & Café Moroc This richly decorated restaurant remakes Old Town Toronto as an ageless Barbary Coast encampment, where visitors dine in colourful splendour while partaking in traditional French-Moroccan hospitality (including nightly belly dancing shows). The three-course prix fixe, featuring the likes of a couscous salad, braised lamb shank and assorted tagines, is particularly popular for groups. Guests seeking a more subdued experience can savour a languid lunch or afternoon mint tea at the Casablanca-inspired, front-of-house Café Moroc.

THE BEST NEW RESTAURANTS IN TORONTO FOR 2015 ARE A POTENT MIX OF FINE-DINING RESTAURANTS AND EASYGOING ESTABLISHMENTS

Kasa Moto’s ambitious Japanese spread helped to make it one of best new restaurants to open in Toronto in 2015 (photo: Liam Mogan)

Toronto’s dining scene is renowned for its diversity; its best restaurants are lauded for combining fresh, local flavours with culinary inspirations from around the globe. But it’s a tight market (the city’s foodies are a fickle bunch) and newcomers need to offer both high-quality cooking and a dash of conceptual creativity to really stand out. Fortunately, a select group of establishments rose to the challenge, and in doing so became our favourite pizza parlours, gourmet cafés, seafood spots and fine-dining spaces to debut in 2015.

Torontonians tend to spend a lot of time and energy thinking about food and drink. And why wouldn’t we? This city’s collection of restaurants, cafés, snack spots and cocktail bars is arguably both the most varied and highest quality in the country. That said, the culinary borders of Canada do extend beyond Toronto’s city limits: Montreal and Vancouver are also renowned foodie towns, and closer to home, Southern Ontario hot spots like the Niagara and Muskoka regions, Stratford, and Prince Edward County also cater to discerning tastes. But you needn’t take our word for it. Hop in your car and discover these road trip–worthy Ontario restaurants for yourself.

THE LEAD UP TO HALLOWEEN INEVITABLY BRINGS OUT BONE-CHILLING, SPINE-TINGLING, GOOSEBUMP-INCITING STORIES OF PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, SPOOKY SIGHTINGS AND HAUNTED TORONTO DESTINATIONS. FEELING THE URGE TO INDULGE YOUR INNER GHOSTBUSTER? HEAD TO OEN OF THESE SIX SCARY SPOTS IN THE CITY—IF YOU DARE.

Old City Hall is said to be haunted by the ghosts of two convicted criminals (photo: Eric Parker)

Depending on who you talk to, both Robert Turpin and Arthur Lucas are said to haunt one of two different locations in Toronto: Old City Hall and the Don Jail. Turpin and Lucas were the last two individuals in “Muddy York” to be sentenced to death for their crimes. As one story goes, the penalty of death by hanging was delivered in a courtroom at Old City Hall where the men now roam, sometimes tugging at judges’ robes. Alternatively, the men haunt the gallows of the Old Don Jail—where many inmates were treated poorly while the prison was in operation from 1964 to 1977, and in whose open courtyard hangings were carried out.